The Field Marshal

The Sound of Music Music, especially those with vocals, have been the bane of my mental focus since I started formal education. My mind just cannot concentrate on a task in any environment where loud music is being played. Thus, I have always looked on with envy on friends who study with the discman, yeah it was that long ago, 'plugged' into their heads via the earbuds headphones. This 'affliction' has followed me into my work life. I would always be one of the most irritable person around when someone blares a radio in the office, since most offices are open-concept nowadays. Since there are no walls to muffled the music, I had to suffer in silence as the majority of the people I know enjoy the music as they work. Guess minorities like me will always suffer. FM987 and Power98 are two of the stations which I dislike the most. They are definite noise polluters in any setting. Most of the songs are pop junk that are neither melodious nor nice. Thus, my nerves are always frayed and grated whenever people switch to these channels, which somehow seem to be really popular with younger folks. Perhaps I am getting old? Bless the higher-ups, now I have my own room in office. Ah... silence... peace... no more noise form the 2 highly irritating radio stations. Here comes the contradiction. Despite my obsession with silence, I have to admit that I do enjoy music. I love listening to mostly popular tunes played on Symphony 92.4, Class 95, Gold 90.5, Love 97.2 and sometimes Y.E.S933. Looking at the stations above, I have to admit that my taste in music has changed from, omigosh, 987FM, to these 'old folks' stations. Guess I am really getting old. I am in a conundrum here. I love listening to my favourite tunes but I just can't put my mind on anything when tunes are playing. So it must mean that radio and music is a no-no in my office, which happens to be my modus operandi for the last 5-6 years of office-life. But I want to listen to some music to relieve some of the stress I get everyday. Jia lat! Is my life, work-life that is, destined to be one filled with crypt like silence? To the rescue came The International Channel FM96.3! Playing an eclectic mix of music, classis, J-pop, instrumental covers of pop songs, vocals, jazz etc, the International Channel is definitely music for ears tired of the incessant rubbish that comes out from today's popular stations. Apart from music which I can relate to, the main draw, for me, is the continued streaming of lyric-less, yes no lyrics!!!, music for hours on end. To this, I have to add that I can actually work with music, but only those without vocals. Thus, the music is a perfect match for me. It allows me to relax from the daily stresses at work, which appears to increase everyday, but it also gives me the enjoyment of listening to tunes which I grew up on. Barring the French and German segements, the station is wonderful! The Japanese segment is great since I somehow enjoy the chatter of the talkhosts, despite my total lack of understanding of what's going on. The J-pop is also pretty good. Since this discovery, my office is now filled with music from every morning till evening. There were times when my colleagues must be wondering if I am a talented linguist, especially when I forget to switch channels even when the French and German programmes come on. Well, they have no need to know that I am not one. Now, that's a secret for you and me to know. ;)